Verde the Star Warrior: Tales of Beginning (Revised)
by AuthorOfTheUniverse2401
Summary: If you're reading this, chances are you've heard of the two most famous Star Warriors, Kirby and Meta Knight. But you've probably never heard of Verde the Star Warrior. He is a hero among Star Warriors, but he doesn't exactly have a heroic background. Read on, and get entangled in the tragic story of the multiverse's greatest hope. Luckily, this is the revised version!
1. Murderous Beginnings

Chapter One: Murderous Beginnings

It was an unearthly sound that alerted Verde the Star Warrior, and roused him from his deep sleep.

It was a sound that pierced the air and seemed to echo off his bedroom walls. High-pitched and nonstop, this sound seemed to have one purpose and one purpose only: to frighten and startle Verde's 6-year-old mind. Then, as quickly as it began, the sound stopped. Verde's mind, still cloudy from sleep, raced as his curiosity battled his fear. His curiosity told him that he needed to know what that sound was. At the same time, his fear told him to stay in his bedroom, curl up in his blankets, and wait for whatever caused the sound to go away.

Naturally, his curiosity won out. Verde threw the emerald green covers off of himself and got out of his green bed, all without making a sound. Since he was light on his feet, as all Star Warriors were, Verde did not make even a slight noise as he moved across his bedroom floor (also green). The moonlight shined through Verde's window and cast shadows that danced along his bedroom wall. Yet Verde hardly noticed their existence. He was concentrated on moving towards the source of that sound. He seemed to blend in to his forest of a bedroom, as both the walls and his skin were emerald green.

He had reached the hallway now, and he knew immediately that something was amiss. As he looked around with his bright green eyes, he noticed that the window in the hallway was thrown wide open.

 _Odd. We usually lock that_ , Verde thought. Then he noticed that his parent's bedroom door was flung open as well. He once again thought to himself how odd it was that the door was open like that. It was usually only ever open just a crack. Verde soundlessly ran to his parent's bedroom door –

And was absolutely mortified by what he saw.

He could see his parents, or rather the two mounds of blue and yellow blood that could have been his parents, lying on the bed. They were barely recognizable, covered in the aforementioned blood as still seeming to trickle out of their wounds. They were sporting several claw marks all over their bodies. The sight of his father's blue blood and his mother's yellow blood nearly caused him to vomit. That is when he noticed the other two shapes also standing on the bed.

Both were dressed exactly the same: capes, mitten-like gloves, and horns were all visible looking at them from the back. They wore the garb of a Star Warrior and, Verde was willing to bet, if they turned around, he would be able to see that they wore masks on their faces.

There were many differences that Verde also noticed. One was black as coal, both his skin and his clothes; the other was deathly white, so much so that Verde nearly mistook him for a ghost. The black one carried an axe, also black, and the white one was wearing gloves that had knives coming out of them, giving him the appearance of having claws. Both their weapons had blue and yellow blood on them. When they spoke the black one had a rough, gravelly voice while the white one's voice was smooth and quiet.

"Do you think that Lord Galacta Knight would have been happy of what we have done Blanc?" the black one asked.

"I think so, brother," said Blanc. "The Meta Knight clan will sorely miss these two."

"But brother, are you sure these two are as respected as our spies led us to believe?"

"Of course, Noir. I have seen their weapon skills myself."

Verde decided he should phone the police. He had heard enough. He began to back out of the room.

"They will be truly demoralized by what has happened once they hear of it, won't they?" asked Noir.

"I think so, Noir," responded Blanc. "You know, I heard that these two had a son."

It was at that moment that Verde's feet decided to trip over themselves. The crash that he made seemed to be deafening in the quiet of the house. Noir and Blanc immediately tensed up, then turned around to see Verde sprawled on the floor. Both of their eyes were gray, seeming to glow in the dark behind their masks. A plus sign-shaped eyehole allowed for each of them to see.

"Where the hell did this one come from?" Noir inquired.

"I think this is their son that we were talking about," Blanc responded, motioning towards the two bodies of Verde's parents.

"So what do we do now?" Noir asked.

Blanc absently tapped his knife-claws together. "I'm not sure. I should have known that someone would have heard the yellow one scream when she woke and saw her husband's dead body right next to her."

"Blanc," said Noir, "I am feeling kind of hungry,"

"Really? At a time like this you think of food?" Blanc inquired. He looked at Verde. "You, boy! Bring us some food." Verde was about to run when Blanc held his hand out. "Wait! If you try to call the cops, make no mistake. We will kill you."

Verde ran to the kitchen.

"Well, it wasn't exactly a royal banquet, but it was filling." Noir said, patting his bloated stomach.

"Yes, I enjoyed it too." Blanc replied, staring at his empty plate.

"You sure that no one else would have noticed the racket we've been making?" Noir inquired.

"Of course. You said it yourself: this is their vacation home. They are not near any civilization. Even the cops would take a while to find this place." Blanc assured Noir.

"You're probably right," Noir said. "That kid locked himself up in his room, right?"

"Correct. He will not bother us any longer. Now, I think we had better get going." Blanc got up.

"Blanc, remind me again why we just killed two people in their sleep." Noir inquired.

"Well, it is the middle of the night. I suppose I have time to remind you." Blanc sat back down, "We did this because Azul and Amarillo the Star Warriors are two of Meta Knight's greatest friends. By killing them, we have dealt an emotional blow to him and his clan. Now do you understand?"

"Yes, brother," Noir replied. "Now we may get going." He picked up his axe, which had been leaning against the table as they ate, and walked to the door. "Are you coming?" he asked.

"Yes, Noir, I'll be right there."

Noir nodded and walked out the door. Blanc then grabbed his knife gloves off of the counter.

But they weren't there.

Blanc looked on the table, then on the floor. There was no way he could have lost them. He had them on as he had walked into the kitchen. He had taken them off and placed them on the counter before he had sat down to eat. So what –

"Stop!"

A tiny voice shouted at Blanc from the hallway. He turned around and looked at the small, green figure behind him.

Verde was wearing Blanc's knife gloves. They were only slightly too big on him; but then, Blanc had small hands.

"Don't move, or I swear I'll kill you!" Verde shouted in a shaky voice. His knife-claws were trembling.

Blanc laughed. It was a cold, sharp sound. "Go ahead, boy. Kill me."

Time passed. Seconds passed by when it felt like hours. Both of the two puffballs staring at each other. Waiting for the other to make a move. Finally, Blanc's smooth voice cut through the silence.

"Look, boy," Blanc began, "I know you're not going to kill me. You know you're not going to kill me. So just give me the gloves, and I may forget that this all ever happened."

For a moment, Verde hesitated. Then his resolve hardened as he remembered that he was talking to a murderer.

"You may forget it," Verde shouted. "But I never will!"

Then he swiped at Blanc with his claws.

Blanc's hand simply dropped to the floor. Milky white blood poured on to it. Verde heard screams. He barely heard Blanc run past him.

Then everything went black.


	2. The Meta Knight Approaches

Chapter 2: The Meta Knight Approaches

It was a slow night for the Sleepy Sheep Tavern.

Then again, it was always a slow night for any tavern in this isolated part of Cappy Town. No one ever seemed to come here. That day the tavern keeper had few customers: a Waddle Dee from Dedede Castle on his lunch break, a female Cappy (his only regular), and a stranger in a large trench coat that masked his face in shadows. The stranger and the woman were the only two left in the tavern.

The tavern keeper frowned at this stranger now. He had arrived early that morning, got a cup of coffee, and sat down in the back. The tavern keeper noticed that he had asked for several refills on coffee, but never seemed to drink it. The cup got cold long before all the coffee had disappeared. He had never leaved, only sat and watched with those emerald green eyes, occasionally sipping his coffee. The woman had arrived that evening for her dinner. Ever since then, the stranger seemed to always flick his eyes back to rest on her before quickly looking around again. Then he looked back at her, then away, then back, and the cycle continued.

It was around half an hour before closing time when the stranger made his move.

He drained his coffee cup in one gulp, got up, and sat down at the table across from the woman. She had nearly finished her dinner and looked up as he sat down.

"Can I help you, sir?" the woman asked.

"Help me? I highly doubt that, Miss." The stranger replied. His eyes seemed to glow from in the shadows of his coat.

They sat in silence for some time as the woman finished her dinner.

"Is there any particular reason you decided to sit down across from me, young man?" she asked.

The stranger paused before answering. "I was wondering if we could chat."

"Very well then, to whom do I owe the pleasure of chatting with?" the woman inquired.

The stranger pushed back his trench coat so the woman could see his face. She recognized him as a Star Warrior; no one else other than the Waddle Dees had that distinct puffball shape. Like his eyes, his skin was green. He was smiling, well, at least it could be called a smile. It reminded the woman more of a wolf baring its fangs.

"I used to be called Verde," the stranger replied. "But now, you may recognize me by my other name. You may call me Greenie the Terror."

The woman started at that. She had heard of Greenie the Terror; any self-respecting citizen of Dreamland had heard of him. He was a notorious serial killer, famous for the claw marks he left on his victims. He had been terrorizing the kingdom for years now, yet King Dedede's Waddle Dee police force had never caught him once. If this truly was the man himself, then she knew that she was in a boatload of trouble.

Greenie leaned forward so that his face was but inches away from hers. "And what might your name be, Miss?" Greenie asked. It sounded more like a command than a question, though.

"Angela," was all she could say.

Greenie's grin widened. "I relish at your fear, Ms. Angela," Greenie said. "My victims' fear is one of my favorite parts of being a serial killer."

"Wha-wha-what are you going to do to me?" Angela stammered.

"Why, nothing. Nothing at all Ms. Angela. At least, not yet," Greenie replied. "For now, I would just like to chat. What –

He suddenly stopped talking and tilted his head as if he heard something. Then he flicked his wrist and knives shot out of his mitten-like glove. He spun around quickly and flicked his wrist again. A knife shot out of his first-finger slot and embedded itself right near the tavern keeper's face. He had just been trying to dial the police. The phone had rang twice when the third ring was cut off around the same time that Greenie had thrown his knife. The tavern keeper looked at the phone in his trembling hand. The cord had been severed. Greenie was still grinning that wolfish grin.

"Nice try, buddy. But I'm not that stupid. If you call the police, the next knife goes right in your throat," Greenie explained calmly. The tavern keeper had no doubt that the puffball standing in front of him now could do it too.

"Now, where were we, Ms. Angela?" Greenie asked. Angela was almost petrified with fear now.

"W-w-w-why?" she asked.

Greenie tilted his head again. "Why…what?"

"W-w-why did you k-k-kill all those p-p-people?" She stuttered.

Greenie pondered this for a moment. "I suppose I do it for fun," he explained, "But I think there is a reason for my enjoyment, but I just don't know." He snapped his head up as if he had just remembered something. Angela nearly fell out of her seat. "I see it now!" Verde exclaimed.

He sat back in his chair. Angela noticed that he had never put away his knife claws. "Nine years ago today," he said. "Nine years ago today was the first time I killed someone.

"Of course, who could have blamed me? I had seen him and his brother kill my parents. I simply grabbed his weapon and chopped off his arm. I suppose after that I blacked out because I couldn't remember anything happening immediately after that. When I came to, it was morning. I ran away from my house after that. Made it to this town. I saw the newspaper then. I saw him again. Right there on the front page. Apparently, police had found him dead in an alleyway, said the main cause of death was blood loss. That was when I realized something. I had enjoyed it. I had enjoyed killing that man. And so, my killing career continues to this day.

"My, I bored you quite a bit with that, didn't I? Well, it was nice chatting with you, Ms. Angela. See you in hell!" Greenie said gleefully. He flicked his wrist and more knives came out of his other hand. Angela fell out of her seat, backed away quickly from the grinning figure in front of her. She didn't want to die. Not now. She still had so much to do. She would have screamed, but it was cut off when another person opened the door.

The new person was a Star Warrior. However, this one was dark blue, almost black, and carried a sword at his side. A mask covered his face, so the only thing that could be seen about it was the two bright yellow eyes peering through the v-shaped slit allowing for eyesight. A dark blue cape was on his back, the same color as his skin.

Metallic thuds were heard as he stepped forward in his blue metal boots. He stopped a few meters from the green figure standing before him. No one had moved since the person came in. He looked at the tavern keeper.

"Well, you're the one who called, right? We realized as soon as you were cut off that something serious had happened." He turned to the other two figures before him. "Might I ask what you plan to do with those claws of yours?"

Greenie laughed. "And who are you to ask that?"

The Star Warrior paused, not at all phased by the serial killer's rudeness. "I am Meta Knight. I am thousands of years old. I have seen and done things much worse than serial killing. There is nothing you can say that will change the fact that you will be defeated by me if you try and fight me. So, knowing that, are you sure you want to continue with your rudeness?"

Greenie pondered this for a moment. "I am not going to be phased by someone like you. I have heard of you. I know of your power and skill with the sword. But know that I will kill you without hesitation should you interrupt what I am doing. So why don't you just move along."

For a moment, there was only silence. Then, Meta Knight said very carefully: "Very well. Have it your way." He began to walk towards the door.

Greenie probably would have gotten away with this murder had he not had to have the last laugh.

"That's right, grandpa," he said. "And think twice next time you try to challenge me."

Meta Knight stopped at this last comment. He was right in front of the door. Greenie didn't care. He had lost interest in him. He had returned to trying to carry out his dastardly deed.

Then, Greenie heard a faint click as the padlock turned. He quickly looked to the door. Meta Knight had turned around, the door behind him locked. He drew his gleaming, golden sword, Galaxia.

"That's it, old man. You have crossed the line. Die!" shouted Greenie, leaping at Meta Knight. Greenie swiped at Meta Knight with his knife-claws, but Meta Knight swiftly parried the blow. The two were now locked, sword to claws.

"I think you need to learn some manners." Meta Knight declared calmly.

"Terribly sorry," Greenie said in a mock apologetic tone. "Let me try that again. _Please_ die!"

He jumped back, then leaped forward in a heartbeat, a green blur of claws. Meta Knight dodged each blow, though he was surprised at how fast he had to move to get out of the way. This Greenie, whoever he was, was obviously a man of some skill. And yet, Meta Knight noticed, he was barely fifteen years old.

From there, it was a speedy sequence of claws, sword strikes, dodges, and parries as each tried to get the advantage over the other. This continued for some time. In that time, the tavern keeper quickly took Angela, who had fainted, out of a secret way. Finally, the two Star Warriors stopped, each breathing heavily. Despite knowing who this person was, Meta Knight couldn't help but be impressed. Few people lasted this long in a serious duel with him. He also decided that this had lasted too long.

Greenie apparently felt the same way. He leapt at Meta Knight again, snarling as he swiped both hands at him. At the same time, Meta Knight leapt at Greenie, swinging his sword in a horizontal arch to intercept the killer. The force of the blow flung Greenie's knife-claw gloves off of his hands all the way behind the bar. Yet Meta Knight retained Galaxia.

The two faced each other. Meta Knight's back was to the door. There were no windows in the Sleepy Sheep Tavern, so there was no other way to escape. Greenie faced the facts. He was cornered.

"Good fight, old man," he said. "Perhaps another time, we shall duel again."

"That will be difficult, considering you will be locked up in maximum security," Meta Knight answered. He made the mistake of turning to unlock the door.

He heard a click, and turned around to find that Greenie had a pistol in his hand. The barrel was pointed directly at Meta Knight's face.

"It will be equally difficult for you, old man, considering you will be six feet under," Greenie spat. Meta Knight noticed that, despite his apparent fury, Greenie had not stopped grinning. "I don't really like to use guns, but I always keep one on me just in case. I think it's much more fun to feel my victims' flesh tear as I claw through them.

"Now, then. See you in hell old man," Greenie said with utter contempt.

He pulled the trigger.

Time seemed to slow down. Meta Knight could see the bullet traveling directly to him. His lightning reflexes saved him. He flicked up Galaxia instinctively.

The bullet bounced off the flat of the blade –

Directly at Greenie.

Greenie saw the bullet fly directly at him. It hit his right eye. For a moment, his senses were a world of pain.

Then everything went black.


	3. The Future is Decided

Chapter 3: The Future is Decided

The first thing Verde became conscious of was the hollow feeling in his right eye.

He wasn't exactly sure why it was there, but it was. He also soon realized that there were blaring lights shining on him through his eyelids. When he opened his eyes (or rather eye, he was unable to open his right eye for some strange reason) he saw a large lamp shining on him from the ceiling. The walls were entirely painted white. He knew immediately that something was wrong, but his mind, still cloudy from sleep, was unable to place it.

Then it hit him: this wasn't the room he had gone to sleep in last night.

"Good, you're awake," a heavily accented voice said. "For a second there, we thought you would not make it."

Verde turned to his right. A stranger was sitting on a stool right next to his bed. He was dark blue and spherically shaped; he was obviously a Star Warrior. A dark blue cape hung on his back, and he wore a sword on his side. Intelligent yellow eyes shined from behind the strangers mask.

"Where am I? What am I doing here? Who are you?" Verde asked.

"One question at a time," the stranger said. "You are in Castle Dedede's sick bay, we were patching you up after that fight you had, and my name is Meta Knight."

For a moment, Verde was speechless. "Wait, you're _the_ Meta Knight? King Dedede's royal advisor and the most skilled Star Warrior in the realm?" He paused, as if trying to remember something. "Wait, you said I was in a fight. What do you mean?"

Meta Knight blinked, then tilted his head slightly. "Wait, you mean to tell me you don't remember anything from last night? Anything at all?" he asked worryingly.

"Well, I remember fixing up my dinner, eating it, brushing my teeth, and then going to bed. What else is there to remember?"

Meta Knight paused for an extraordinarily long time. "You don't remember the bar fight, the bullet you took to the eye, anything at all?"

"A bar fight? I think I would remember if I –" Verde suddenly stopped himself. "Wait, are you saying I was shot in the eye?" he shouted.

Meta Knight handed Verde a mirror from his bedside table. "See for yourself."

Verde quickly snatched the mirror and looked into it.

He couldn't believe what he saw. He suddenly understood it all: the hollow feeling in his right eye, his inability to open it. It was all because his right eye was no longer there. In its place was a black eye patch, the kind a stereotypical pirate would wear.

Did it happen again? But, there's no way he could have had another accident – it had been so long since the last one!

Verde looked at Meta Knight. The Star Warrior seemed to be looking at him very seriously. "Sir, what day is it today?" he asked, the fear obvious in his voice.

Meta Knight seemed genuinely taken aback by the question. All this shock, and he wants to know something as mundane as today's date? "It's Friday, why do you ask?"

Verde simply stared at Meta Knight for the longest time. "No. No, no, no! It can't be true!" he shouted.

Meta Knight was startled by this sudden outburst. "What is it, what's wrong?" he asked quickly.

Verde didn't seem to hear him. "No, that's impossible! I went to sleep on a Wednesday night! How could this have happened again?"

Meta Knight couldn't understand what was happening. "How could what have happened again? Please, you have to explain to me what's going on," he said.

Verde finally seemed to hear Meta Knight, and he turned to him. "You have to promise that you will believe me. Every word I say is the truth."

Meta Knight thought this over for a moment. He decided that the only way to truly find out what's going on was to do whatever this boy said.

"Very well," he said. "Start from the very beginning."

And so, Verde told Meta Knight his story

Line Break

"So let me get this straight. You mean to tell me that this fifteen year old kid is the notorious serial killer Greenie the Terror and that he decides to go on a killing spree sometimes and is never aware of it?"

"That is exactly what I am telling you, Your Majesty."

"What kind of fool do you take me for, Meta Knight?"

King Dedede and Meta Knight were speaking with each other in the throne room of Dedede Castle after Meta Knight had spoken with Verde. The King couldn't believe this story that Meta Knight had presented him.

"I do hope you have some kinda explanation for this…this…this tall tale!" the King said.

"Your Majesty, Verde's parents were murdered right in front of him. On top of that, he was responsible for the death of one of the men who murdered them. All this happened to him at the age of six. I'm not a doctor, but it is entirely possible that Verde's suffering from some kind of PTSD," Meta Knight explained.

"So…so you tellin' me that Greenie the Terror – the scourge of Dreamland – was really just the result of some kinda schizophrenia or somethin' like that?" Dedede demanded.

"Majesty, please understand. I would not lie to you –"

"But how do you know this guy didn't? He is a serial killer! We can't just ignore that he tried to kill that woman last night!"

"Yes, he tried and _failed_ , meaning he did not succeed."

"But what about those dozens of people that he did succeed in killin', huh? What about them?"

"Majesty, Verde is a very confused young man and he needs help."

"What he needs is to be behind bars!"

"Majesty, do you ever stop yelling?"

King Dedede made a conscious effort to lower his voice. "Look, Meta Knight, I don't want to put this kid in the slammer as much as you do. But what else am I supposed to do? I mean, he is a kid, so his punishment isn't going to be quite as harsh as it would be if he were older."

"But, Majesty, he's still looking at the better part of his life spent in prison."

"Well, Meta Knight, unless you got a better idea, we have no choice."

Meta Knight could not argue with that. He had believed every word that Verde had said. Some sixth sense told him that the boy had been telling the truth, probably that same sixth sense that had kept him alive in battle after battle. The problem was that Verde had no way to control his "Greenie the Terror" personality. If only someone could teach him how to…

That's it! He knew exactly how to solve this problem!

"Your Majesty!" Meta Knight shouted excitedly, making the King nearly fall out of his throne.

"For Pete's sake! Warn me next time you shout like that!" he yelled.

Meta Knight looked at King Dedede, a wild look in his eyes. Dedede hated that look. It meant that he was getting one of his _ideas_ again.

"I know exactly how to solve all of our problems."


	4. To Be Chosen

**Note:** **This chapter is loooooooooong! It took a long time to revise this one. I hope you like it. Favorite and review, if you would please!**

– **Your friendly neighborhood VTSW**

Chapter 4: To Be Chosen

Verde continued to stare at the white walls of his holding cell.

Meta Knight had pretended otherwise, but Verde knew that's what it was: a holding cell. Why else would armed guards be placed right outside and the door locked? After all, he had committed a serious crime. Again. He had let it happen again! And he had done so well, too, trying to keep his alter ego under control. It had been almost three months since his last accident and he had lost control again!

Maybe they would kill him; he had certainly done enough to deserve the death penalty. Perhaps that was for the best. Maybe that was the only way to get rid of Greenie the Terror for good. Maybe death –

Verde was snapped out of his daydreaming by the sound of the door clicking as the key was inserted into the lock. Immediately, Verde watched the door like a hawk from his bed (he had to turn to see it through his left eye – he still wasn't quite used to that). Who could it be? A lawyer? The executioner? The executer?

It was Meta Knight, a wild look in his eyes. Verde noticed that the guards were no longer standing at the door. Had Meta Knight dismissed them? But why?

Meta Knight's next statement answered Verde's question.

"Get up, boy. You are coming with me."

Line Break

Verde struggled to keep up with Meta Knight as they moved briskly down the hall.

"Where are we going?" Verde asked, though he felt that he knew the answer already.

"You will see." Meta Knight responded. "And I think you will like what you see."

"Could you at least say what you plan to do with me?"

Meta Knight stopped suddenly. Verde nearly ran into him.

"Alright. I was going to wait to tell you this, but I can tell you will explode with curiosity if you don't find out," Meta Knight responded.

They had stopped right in the middle of the hall, right in front of a door. There did not appear to be anyone else here. _Why won't he tell me my punishment already?_ Verde thought to himself.

The excitement seemed to radiate from Meta Knight as he said: "You are to become my apprentice.

Verde wasn't quite sure what to say now. His apprentice? What on Popstar did that mean? He was a murderer, he should be locked up, not apprenticed to a legend!

"Your apprentice?" Verde demanded. "Why would I deserve that?"

Though it could not be seen since he was wearing a mask, Meta Knight raised an eyebrow. "Are you saying that the punishment is too harsh?" Meta Knight inquired, deadly serious.

Verde realized how rude he had been. "Oh, I didn't mean it that way, sir, not at all!" He reassured hurriedly.

"Then perhaps the punishment is not harsh enough?"

"No! It's not that either!"

"Listen. You do not deserve to be punished. After all, you did not commit those crimes. Greenie the Terror did. You were completely unaware that you were committing these murders, yes?" Verde nodded. "Then I see no reason to punish you."

Verde couldn't believe his luck. He was getting away with virtually no punishment. He was literally getting away with murder! But at what cost? What if he became Greenie and murdered again?

"Do not worry." Meta Knight said, a hand on Verde's shoulder. "You will learn to control your alter ego. I will help you, and so will some of my colleagues. You do not have to go through with this alone, you know."

Had Meta Knight just read his mind?

"Now, then. Care to see what is behind this door marked 'Weapons Chamber'?" Meta Knight asked, pointing to the door right next to them.

"Aren't there weapons in there?" Verde asked.

Meta Knight's eyes curved as he gave Verde a rare smile. "I have a feeling we are going to get along just fine, Verde."

Line Break

Verde got dizzy as he looked around the vast Weapons Chamber.

There were weapons of all sort here: axes, guns, maces, bombs, spears, swords, knives, and all sorts of other sharp, dangerous looking instruments of which Verde could find no name for. Shelves filled with ammunition crates, whetstones, and other weapon accessories lined the walls. Just about everything looked extremely dangerous and Verde had a feeling that if there was a fire, the whole castle would go up in smoke.

"Impressive is it not?" Meta Knight remarked. "This is the biggest storage of weapons in the kingdom. Just about any weapon can be found here."

One weapon in particular caught Verde's eye. At first, he thought it was just another pile of knives carelessly placed on the shelf. Then he noticed that the knives were attached to something: a pair of gloves.

"My knife-claws!" Verde shouted, picking them up off the shelf.

Meta Knight frowned at the gloves, though it could not be seen. "I thought I told him to put those where no one would find them." He said disapprovingly. "His disorganization skills never cease to amaze me."

"So, what are we doing here?" Verde inquired.

"If you are to become my apprentice, you are going to need a weapon to specialize in," Meta Knight explained. "We can't use those," he said, pointing at the gloves.

"Why not?" Verde wanted to know.

"Those knives have a lot of blood on them. It would be unwise to use them after they have killed so many innocents. You might go insane again. And besides, if people see you walking around with the weapons of a murderer, they might not take too kindly to you. Now, your parents must have taught you the ways of the sword since you were able to walk, so we will start there."

Meta Knight picked up a hammer from off of a shelf and banged it three times on the wall. Verde was surprised at how much it echoed.

"Plasma Wisp!" Meta Knight called. "Plasma Wisp, are you in here?"

For a moment, nothing happened. Then the lights began to flicker, casting odd shadows as they hung from the ceiling. Suddenly, the nearest one began sparking. A trail of lightning was descending from the ceiling into the light! Suddenly, the lightning jumped out of the light and onto the ground, where it took shape.

Verde wasn't able to comprehend what he was seeing. The lightning had transformed itself into a green ball of fire with eyes! Disembodied hands floated in front of the fireball. Its eyes were wild, shifting all over the place. Its hands were constantly moving, fiddling with a weapon on the shelf, or running through his fiery hair. Either he was naturally hyper, or he had eaten nothing but sugar for breakfast, by the spoonful. A pair of goggles perched just above his eyes, though Verde wasn't quite sure how that was possible when balls of fire were not exactly solid.

"Right here, Lord Meta Knight! Plasma Wisp at your service!" he shouted, giving a salute by touching his fingers to his forehead (or rather, where his forehead should be) and going completely rigid (can fireballs go rigid?).

"Good to see that you have not lost any of your energetic charm, Plasma Wisp," Meta Knight greeted.

"Well, I've got to have a lot of energy to be one of His Majesty's most trusted mechanics," Plasma Wisp said. "Now, what can I do for you, my lord?"

"For starters, you can put these where no one will find them like I _asked_ you to do half an hour ago." Meta Knight said, holding out Verde's knife gloves.

Plasma Wisp laughed nervously. "Oh, yeah. Sorry about that. I was kinda busy, you know?" Plasma Wisp took the knife gloves and threw them as hard as he could towards the back of the room. "There, all done!"

Meta Knight face-palmed. "I will never get used to you, Plasma Wisp. One more thing. I would like you to meet my new apprentice, Verde," Meta Knight said, presenting Verde to the fireball.

"Salutations and a how-do-you-do to you, Mr. Verde!" Plasma Wisp greeted, shaking Verde's hand vigorously. "Any idea what kinda weapon you're looking for?"

"I was thinking maybe some kind of sword if you would please, sir?" Verde asked politely.

Plasma Wisp's eyes curved in a smile as he turned to Meta Knight "You hear that, my lord? He called me sir!" Not waiting for a reply, he turned back to Verde. "Well, if it's a sword you're looking for, you've come to the right place! We've got all kinds of swords: sabers, katanas, broadswords, rapiers, you name it, we got it! Here try this one," he ended, holding out a huge sword to Verde. It was four times as big as him, and he promptly fell over under its weight.

"No," all three of them said at once.

"Let's walk down the hall for a bit, what do you say?" Plasma Wisp asked, though it did not seem that he expected an answer, as he was floating down the hall already. Meta Knight and Verde turned to look at each other, shrugged, then continued on after Plasma Wisp.

"How about this one?" Plasma Wisp was asking, holding a sword in his hand. It had a curve at the end of the blade, like a hook.

"What kind is that?" Verde wanted to know.

"This is a hookblade," Plasma Wisp explained. "The hook shape at the end of the blade allows you to disarm your opponent with the flick of the wrist." Plasma Wisp demonstrated by flicking the sword, miming a disarming.

"Um, I don't think that's exactly my style." Verde said.

"That's okay, there are still plenty of other weapons to choose from! Don't worry, there's got to be a weapon in here that's just for you. Now this one…"

This continued for some time. It seemed they went through every blade in the armory, and yet none of them were right for Verde. Some were too long, some were too short. Some were too heavy, some too light. Some had a grip that didn't really suit Verde. Whatever the reason, no sword could fit Verde exactly.

Eventually all three of them sat down in the middle of a long hallway of shelves. Verde couldn't even see the door they had come through, they had gone so far in.

Plasma Wisp rubbed his eyes. "I just don't get it. None of these swords fit you correctly! There's gotta be some weapon in here that you would like."

Verde wasn't so sure. Maybe there just wasn't a weapon in here for him. Perhaps this was all a mistake.

Meta Knight looked at Verde. "Do not worry," he said. "There is a weapon in here for you. It just seems to be hiding on us."

"Well, kid, Lord Meta Knight's never wrong so I guess we just have to look harder," Plasma Wisp said. He stood (or he would have if only he had legs) and floated off, heading deeper into the Weapons Chamber.

They continued walking, heading deeper and deeper until they came across a clearing in the forest of weapon racks and shelves. In the center of the clearing was a pair of scabbards, each of which contained a sword. Interestingly enough, the scabbards didn't seem nearly long enough to contain any kind of useful blade; they even seemed too small for a knife.

"So, do mice use those things as swords?" Verde asked.

Plasma Wisp laughed. "Nah, those are just another attempt at trying to replicate Lord Meta Knight's sword, Galaxia."

Verde looked at Meta Knight, a look of questioning in his eyes. The Star Warrior drew his blade. It glowed golden in the dim light of the Weapons Chamber. Three spikes were on each side of the blade. A red gemstone was embedded in the hilt. Verde realized for the first time that Galaxia's blade was too big to fit into the scabbard Meta Knight wore at his side, just like the two swords in the clearing.

"I keep trying to tell him that Galaxia is one of a kind and that it is not going to be replicated, but, among other things, Plasma Wisp is intensely stubborn," Meta Knight told Verde. He gestured around at all the shelves around them. "Just look around at all the failed attempts."

Verde did and realized that similar swords lined the shelves. Some were poking right through their scabbards, as if someone tried to jam them in there. Others were out of their scabbards, as if someone had decided not to even bother trying. Some, but not many, were successfully sheathed in their scabbards. All the swords were in some state of disrepair; some were bent, some were rusted, some had nicks all over the blade, some even had all three. The red gemstones were cracked in all of them.

"They're all so broken," Verde said as he looked around.

Plasma Wisp assumed a sad look in his eyes. "Yeah, my experiments aren't exactly going as well as I'd hoped. I've got the basic shape down, but the problem is that the metal that the blade is made of is extremely unstable. Under the improper conditions, the metal becomes volatile, but when I do forge the sword without it blowing up in my face, the blade isn't strong enough, and it ends up like the ones you see around you." He indicated the shelves around the room, and Verde noticed the various scorch marks around them. Then, Plasma Wisp beamed as he floated over to the pair of swords in the middle of the room. "These, on the other hand, are different! I mixed the metal Galaxia's made of with some metal from a meteorite that I found some time ago. The result was exactly what I was looking for!"

He drew the two swords and laid them on the ground. Unlike the dull gold swords on the various shelves, these two blades shone with a bronze light. A blue gemstone was in the sword in his right hand, while a yellow gemstone was in the sword in his left. They were whole, unlike the others.

"They're beautiful," Verde said.

"Yeah. Did you know that both of these swords have a life of their own?" Plasma Wisp asked.

Verde looked quickly at Plasma Wisp. "Seriously?" Plasma Wisp nodded. "You're not crazy?" He shook his head no. "How did you manage that?"

Plasma Wisp's eyes curved in a smile. "Sorry, kid, trade secret. Only I and a certain king of fire know about that. I'm not at liberty to tell just anyone how to do it. Now the real fun begins when you pick 'em up, like this." He leaned down and grabbed the swords.

"Plasma Wisp, don't!" Meta Knight yelled.

But it was too late. Plasma Wisp held the swords in the air, forming a bronze X. For a moment, he seemed triumphant, joy filling his eyes. Verde realized that Plasma Wisp was extremely happy, probably that this batch hadn't blown up in his face. Then, the bronze light glowed extremely bright, and Plasma Wisp cried out as he was flung across the clearing, through a hallway and out of sight. A crash could be heard from the hallway he flew through.

"Plasma Wisp!" Meta Knight shouted, though he sounded more exasperated than worried. He ran down the hallway after the green fireball and Verde, not wanting to get lost, picked up the two bronze blades and ran after them.

They came out into another clearing, this time filled with spears. They were definitely better put together than the shelves full of swords. Plasma Wisp was sitting in front of a fallen rack of spears, the contents of which were fallen over on the floor. His goggles were askew, only covering one eye. Meta Knight was standing over Plasma Wisp, helping him up. _How had he gotten there so fast?_ Verde wondered.

He ran to the two of them just in time to hear Meta Knight saying "– knew it would reject you! Why would you do that?"

Plasma Wisp raised his hands in the air, palms up. He seemed completely oblivious to the fact that he had collapsed into a rack of spears. "Guess maybe I thought they wouldn't reject me. I hadn't wielded them before, so –"

He stopped talking suddenly as he noticed Verde. He began staring at him.

"You dropped these," Verde said, presenting the two gleaming bronze swords to Plasma Wisp. The green fireball continued to stare at Verde, the shock obvious in his eyes. _What's he doing?_ Verde thought. He looked at Meta Knight to try ask him, but Meta Knight was staring at Verde too.

"Seriously, why are you guys staring at me?" Verde asked.

Plasma Wisp pointed dumbly at the swords. "You're holding the swords."

Verde was seriously confused at this point. "Um, yeah. Why is that so shocking?"

"Did you not see what they did to Plasma Wisp?" Meta Knight asked.

"You mean he wasn't just joking around?" Verde asked.

Plasma Wisp put his hand on Verde's shoulder. "Kid, I made those swords exactly like Lord Meta Knight's Galaxia. Galaxia chose him. These swords chose you." His eyes curved in a smile. "Conglaturation! You now possess two of the most powerful swords in the multiverse."

Verde couldn't believe what he was hearing. Two of the most powerful swords in the "multiverse" (whatever that was) now belonged to him. He wasn't sure what to say about this, so he said: "You know you just said congratulations wrong, right?"

Plasma Wisp's eyebrows furrowed together into a frown as he looked at Verde. "No I didn't," he said matter-of-factly.

It was Verde's turn to stare now. "Are you sure you're not crazy?"

Plasma Wisp would have replied to this, but he was interrupted when the ground shook, accompanied by a loud bang. Several racks of spears fell over, clattering across the floor. Meta Knight and Verde nearly fell over with the spears.

"An earthquake?" Verde asked.

"Castle Dedede never gets earthquakes. These tremors can only mean one thing," Meta Knight said.

"What is it? What?" Verde asked impatiently.

"We are under attack," Meta Knight said grimly. He nodded at the swords in Verde's hands. "You had better take those with you."

"I hope you learn fast, kid," Plasma Wisp said, "Because your life may depend on it."


	5. Bugzzy

Chapter 5: Bugzzy

When Meta Knight told him the castle was under attack, Verde wasn't sure what to expect. Certainly not anything like giant bugs with swords.

When Meta Knight and Verde got above ground (Plasma Wisp had stayed in the Weapons Chamber to help arm all of the soldiers) Waddle Dees and Waddle Doos were scurrying to and fro, getting ready to defend the castle. King Dedede was directing the whole mess.

"Get the Gordo barricades set up ASAP! Those monsters ain't waitin' for us to get ready to fight back, you know!" he shouted.

As if on cue, another explosion shook the ground.

Meta Knight and Verde had run up to the King now. "Majesty! What's going on?" Meta Knight asked.

King Dedede noticed the two Star Warriors for the first time. "Oh, good. You're here. We're goin' to need all the help we can get," the King said.

"What's going on?" Meta Knight asked again.

"It's Nightmare's army! It's raiding the castle again! They just don't know when to quit!" Dedede answered.

A look of understanding dawned on Meta Knight's face. "I see. Well, then I suppose Verde and I will go help out the soldiers defending the castle."

"Good. I'll probably be out later," Dedede said as Meta Knight led Verde in the general direction of the main gate. The last thing they heard Dedede say before emerging in the castle courtyard was "Somebody get me my mallet!"

Line Break

"Meta Knight sir," Verde asked, "I was wondering what Nightmare's army is?"

Meta Knight stopped running, and Verde followed suit. Meta Knight looked at Verde. "You mean to tell me that you know nothing of Nightmare's army, eNeMeE, none of that?"

Verde shook his head no. "It's just that…well…you see…" he paused before continuing. "My parents died before they taught me about it, and I never asked about it before then."

Meta Knight suddenly understood "I…see. Well then, perhaps I shall explain it to you. Nightmare's army is a horde of monsters. King Dedede used to buy monsters from Nightmare, or eNeMeE as some called him, to try and defeat Kirby, his enemy at the time. You have heard of Kirby, right?" When Verde nodded, Meta Knight continued. "Kirby defeated every single one of Nightmare's monsters that His Majesty threw at him. Eventually, Nightmare got tired of Kirby defeating his monsters one at a time, and finally sent his entire army out to destroy him for good and take over Dreamland. I worked with Kirby to defeat Nightmare. It wasn't easy, but we did manage to defeat Nightmare, but his army lives on, unleaded and out of control. They give occasional raids on the Castle, and that's what's happening right now."

"And we're going to fight these things with swords and spears?" Verde asked.

Meta Knight looked at him now. "I like you Verde. You always ask the right questions," Meta Knight said.

Their idle chitchat was interrupted when the courtyard exploded.

It was a laser blast that tore up the ground in front of them, and when Verde looked up he saw what had caused it: a huge battleship was hovering above the castle. It looked like a stereotypical flying saucer, bigger than Castle Dedede itself.

"That is a Destroya battleship. This raid might go different from the others. We had better get going," Meta Knight said.

 _How can he be so calm?_ Verde wondered. Little did he know that underneath that mask, Meta Knight's heart was racing as he psyched himself up for battle.

Just then, something huge landed right in the crater, making it bigger than it already was. The resulting shockwave knocked both of them back. When they got up and the dust settled, Verde couldn't believe what he was seeing.

There was a giant blue stag beetle standing in the middle of the crater. In one gloved hand he held a huge club, covered with bumps. In the other hand he carried a curved sword, like a saber, only it was almost as long as a telephone pole.

"What…what is that?" Verde wanted to know.

"It's a Bugzzy," Meta Knight explained. "Some of them are good at swordplay, others are good at judo. Some are even proficient in both."

"Whatever it is, I think it wants us dead!" Verde called. And he was right. Bugzzy spread its arms and roared (do bugs roar?) in an unmistakable challenge. It leaped at them, and Verde noticed huge bug wings allowing the insect to fly. The giant stag beetle drew back his right arm, the one holding the saber, ready to cleave the puffballs in two.

Meta Knight leapt in front of Verde, drawing Galaxia as he did so. He parried the blow, despite the insect's sword being infinitely bigger than him. Meta Knight leaned forward and, with impossible strength, pushed Bugzzy back into the crater. Meta Knight looked at Verde.

"I do hope you do not intend on letting me fight alone," Meta Knight said. "Draw your blades."

Verde realized that he wasn't being a good comrade to Meta Knight. He reached the swords sheathed on either side of him and fumbled as he drew both the swords, one in each hand.

Just then, Bugzzy leaped out of the crater and landed with a crash to their right. He roared again, and Meta Knight ran to intercept the insect. Verde ran after him.

Bugzzy drew his left arm back and swung his club. Meta Knight dodged the blow and leaped at Bugzzy, going for a horizontal swing. Bugzzy easily parried the blow with his saber, but he was nearly too late to stop a side cut from Verde, who had just managed to arrive on the scene. Bugzzy swung with his club and landed a direct hit on Verde, flinging him in the direction of the castle's gate. A blow like that would have killed a normal person, or at least broken every bone in their body. But Star Warriors were made of tougher stuff, and besides, puffballs like Verde didn't have any bones to break. It still hurt like hell, though.

"Verde!" Meta Knight shouted. He unlocked his sword from Bugzzy's, and ran after the green puffball, but he was too late to stop Verde from crashing into the castle wall right next to the gate. Meta Knight could only run to the boy to try and help him up.

"Are you okay?" Meta Knight asked hurriedly. Verde was about to answer when he looked past Meta Knight and pointed. Meta Knight looked behind him and saw Bugzzy flying right for them. Meta Knight hurried to parry the blow –

But the blow never came. Just before he reached the two of them, Bugzzy was struck by lightning. Electricity buzzed all over the monster, and it crashed to the ground and slid to a stop right in front of the two Star Warriors, twitching and sparking.

"What would you guys do without me, eh?" said a voice from behind Bugzzy. A bright green figure rose up and hovered above Bugzzy's body. Goggles adorned this new figure's head.

It was Plasma Wisp.

"Sorry I'm late," he said. If he had a mouth, Verde was sure Plasma Wisp was smirking with it. "I had to provide the garrison with weapons, but we're good now."

"Good of you to join us, Plasma Wisp," Meta Knight remarked.

"Yeah, well, somebody's gotta keep you guys from getting skewered," the green fireball replied. He floated down in front of the two Star Warriors.

"I thought you were just a mechanic!" Verde shouted with surprise as he sheathed his swords. "I didn't know you could do that!"

Plasma Wisp turned to Verde with a look that sent sparks through Verde's body, so to speak. "Looks can be deceiving, kid. Don't assume that just because I'm a tech geek that I'm not a fighter."

Verde felt shameful that he had been so rude to his new friend. Then, something moved behind Plasma Wisp. Verde realized what it was almost too late.

"Look out!" Verde said, grabbing Plasma Wisp's hand and Meta Knight's hand and pulling them along behind them. They were just in time to avoid the full brunt of a blow from Bugzzy's club. The force of the blow, however, shook the ground, and Verde and his friends were thrown across the courtyard a few meters.

Verde looked to his friends. Plasma Wisp's goggles were askew. Apart from his cape being a little ruffled, Meta Knight seemed fine. Verde took a look at himself. He had a huge welt where Bugzzy had whacked him before, and he had a few bruises on his body in other places. He looked back at Bugzzy. Even from this distance, Verde could see the anger in the beast's eyes.

"This is a waste of time." Meta Knight said, sounding mildly annoyed. "Even as we fight this thing, some other monsters might be attacking the rest of Cappy Town. We need to end this quick."

Bugzzy took off, its wings buzzing as it flew up. It went higher and higher…and higher. Verde suddenly realized what was about to happen.

"Guys! He's about to dive at us!" Verde shouted to the others. "We need to get out of the way!"

Plasma Wisp and Meta Knight looked at Bugzzy and came to the same conclusion as Verde. Meta Knight said, "Wait for me to give you the signal. When I do, we dive out of the way, yes?"

"What's the signal?" Verde asked.

Meta Knight looked at Verde and said, completely serious, "Probably something like 'Get the hell out of the way.'"

Just then, Bugzzy fell extremely fast in a nosedive. Meta Knight said, "Get the hell out of the way!"

All three of them took off at once. They managed to get out of the way just as Bugzzy crashed into the spot where they were once sitting. When the dust settled, Verde saw Bugzzy gripping its sword with both hands, its club laying forgotten on the ground next to him. Verde suddenly realized that the saber was stuck in the ground.

Verde began thinking. He thought about how Meta Knight was able to attack Bugzzy, but with little effect. Verde thought how he wasn't able to attack Bugzzy at all. He thought about how Plasma Wisp's lightning was able to stun Bugzzy, but not kill it. An idea formed in his mind.

"Guys, if we attack him separately, we're not going to defeat him in time to save the rest of the town. If we gang up on him, we'll be able to defeat him faster."

The other two seemed to ponder this for a moment. Verde looked at Bugzzy as he gave another tug at the sword embedded in the ground. The saber gave a few inches.

"Sound's good to me." Plasma Wisp said.

"I see no other course of action to take." Meta Knight said, interest in his eyes.

At that moment, Bugzzy's saber moved up another few inches.

"Verde," Meta Knight said. "There's something you should know about the swords. If you concentrate your energy into the blade of the swords, then swing, you'll be able to create a sword beam. If you combine your two sword beams with my sword beam and a blast of Plasma Wisp's lightning, we might be able to destroy him."

Verde contemplated this. "Are you sure I'll be able to do it on my first try?"

"Of course. You can do this. Just think about the blade filling with energy, then swing the swords to release."

Verde looked at the dark blue puffball. "If you say so."

Just then, Bugzzy finally got the sword loose. It picked up the club it dropped, and stared at the three figures in front of it with utter contempt.

"Time to go!" Plasma Wisp shouted.

They ran forward to meet the monstrous threat.

Meta Knight leapt up and struck at Bugzzy with Galaxia. The bug parried the blow with his sword, and brought his club down right in front of Verde, who was trying for an X-shaped cut at it. Plasma Wisp thrust his palm forward, and an arrow of lightning shot at Bugzzy. The arrow struck home, and Bugzzy roared with pain. Verde and Meta Knight jumped out of the way.

"We need an opening!" Verde shouted.

Plasma Wisp's eyes flicked towards the crumbling wall above them. He stared at the wall, thinking, calculating. "I might be able to provide that. Just get Bugs-for-Brains to step forward a little."

Verde smirked. "You got it." Meta Knight simply nodded, and the two swordsmen were off, distracting Bugzzy with cuts and parries and dodges. Plasma Wisp brought his wrists together. He began glowing with an even brighter green light than before, and electricity began sparking around him. Meta Knight and Verde brought Bugzzy closer and closer to the spot that Plasma Wisp was eyeing. Closer…closer…now!

"You two, get out of the way!" Plasma Wisp shouted. The two Star Warriors jumped far away from Bugzzy. Plasma Wisp thrust his hands forward and a straight laser of energy shot forward.

Right into the wall.

A small explosion flung dust in Bugzzy's face, but other than that, the insect was unharmed. Bugzzy sneezed.

"I'd just like to point out that you missed," Verde remarked.

"No. I didn't," Plasma Wisp said simply.

Suddenly, a huge crack opened in the castle wall, then another, then another. Soon the whole wall near Bugzzy was a spider web of cracks. Bugzzy looked at the wall, looked back at his adversaries, and then began running toward the three of them. He took only one step, one thunderous step before the wall came tumbling down on top of him. When the dust settled, his body was buried under a pile of bricks and rocks.

"I guess not," Verde said.

Bugzzy stared at the three of them with more hatred than ever. He began trying to get up. A few bricks tumbled down off the top of the pile.

"That's not going to hold him for long," Plasma Wisp said. "We'd better act fast."

Meta Knight looked to the two of them. "It is time to combine our strength. Focus your energy and create the sword beams, Verde. Plasma Wisp, charge your plasma shot to the maximum."

Verde hesitated. For a moment, he thinks of the possibility of failure, of not being able to defeat Bugzzy. But only for a moment.

Verde held up his two swords in an X above his head. Meta Knight held Galaxia up with its point facing the sky. Plasma Wisp pushed his wrists together. Meta Knight's Galaxia glowed with a golden light. Plasma Wisp began glowing with a green light.

Verde began to do as Meta Knight told him. He thought of the energy from his body flowing through his hands into his swords. He suddenly felt the energy draining out of him. The swords began to grow heavy in his hands. He looked up at the swords. A dim bronze light shone from the swords, but they didn't glow as bright as Galaxia in Meta Knight's hands. Plasma Wisp was charged with so much electricity, there was a bubble of energy surrounding him. Meta Knight looked at Verde.

"You have to mean it! Put all your might into this one strike!" he shouted.

Bugzzy tried to get up again. More bricks fell off the pile, and Verde saw Bugzzy's bug wings poking through, feebly trying to lift the insect out of the rubble.

Verde was trying as hard as he could. He poured what felt like his entire life force into the two blades. The bronze blades shone brighter and brighter. Bugzzy finally broke free of the rubble.

"Now!" Meta Knight shouted "Sword Beam!"

He swung his sword vertically and a golden blade of light shot towards Bugzzy. Verde swung his swords too, in an X-shape. A bronze X of light flung towards Bugzzy. Plasma Wisp thrust his palms forward. A sphere of pure electric energy flew towards Bugzzy. The insect put up his weapons in a parry. The three projectiles collided with the force of a tank. For a moment, Bugzzy stood there, locked with the three projectiles. Then, the sword snapped in two and the club shattered. The lightning ball shot lightning all over Bugzzy's body. The Sword Beams, on the other hand, passed right through Bugzzy.

The lightning sparked on Bugzzy for a long time. When it stopped, the insect fell over and, quite simply, exploded.

The smoke cleared and Plasma Wisp cheered while Meta Knight sheathed his sword. Verde, on the other hand, dropped his swords on the ground. He fell on his back, too weak to even stand. The last thing Verde saw was a dark blue shape growing…bat wings?

Then he blacked out.


	6. Epilogue Awakening Rebuilding and Flying

**Note:** **Here it is! The last chapter in this epic story! I really hope you enjoyed reading it, and I only have one thing to say to you: FAVORITE AND REVIEW PLEASE!**

– **Your friendly neighborhood VTSW**

Epilogue: Awakening, Rebuilding, and Flying

Verde had a dream about flying.

He was flying over all of Dreamland: his summer home, Cappy Town, Castle Dedede, everything. He looked away from the ground and straight forward. He saw a huge, green airship with a mask identical to Meta Knight's on the front. He saw a blue box spinning around and around as it rushed past him. He saw a boy dressed all in green…riding an orange dog like a hoverboard? _No more ice cream before bedtime for me_ , Verde told himself.

Then he saw a black dot in the distance. The dot grew and grew until everything was black. Now he was no longer flying, but more like floating. A pair of white eyes without pupils appeared in the darkness. They blinked twice. Then, a smile appeared underneath the eyes, bright white like the eyes. Then Verde realized that the smile was not exactly made of teeth, but rather another eye, larger this time. It had a big red iris surrounding a deep, black pupil. The bottom eye stared at Verde with a stern gaze, as if to say: _What have you done wrong this time?_

Then, a voice spoke out of the darkness, or rather multiple voices at once saying the same thing: "At the end of the multiverse, of existence, of everything, where will you stand?"

Then the voices and the eyes faded, and a speck emitting golden light faded into existence. The light felt warm on Verde's face, then he felt the undeniable urge to touch the speck. He reached out and tapped the speck with the tip of his mitten-covered hand. The golden light suddenly intensified, then exploded, and Verde was pulled back into the conscious realm.

Line Break

When he woke up, he was in a room with white walls, a white ceiling, and a white floor. He looked to his left. A heart monitor was steadily counting out his heartbeat. He looked to his right (he had to lean a little farther due to his missing right eye). Plasma Wisp was sitting (hovering?) on a stool next to his bed, reading a magazine about machine parts. Verde's swords leaned against the wall.

Verde thought of something sarcastic to say to get Plasma Wisp's attention, and settled on "Ow."

Plasma Wisp continued to read his magazine.

Verde tried saying "I'm dying here."

Plasma Wisp continued to read his magazine.

Verde gathered up his energy, and shouted at the top of his lungs, "Plasma Wisp!"

Plasma Wisp finally looked up from his magazine. "Oh, Verde. You're awake. You should've said something," Plasma Wisp said calmly. "You know, you faint a lot, kid."

Verde decided he was too tired to get angry at this insufferable green fireball. "So, what happened?" he asked. "Did we win?"

Plasma Wisp smiled with his eyes. "We sure did, kid! We drove off the invasion, and I don't think they'll be back anytime soon."

Verde suddenly remembered something: a pair of bat wings, two bright, yellow eyes. "Hey, where's Meta Knight?"

Plasma Wisp scratched his fiery head. "Honestly, I'm not sure. Lord Meta Knight told me to watch you while he took care of organizing the castle's rebuilding. He said to let him know as soon as you woke up. Hold on." Verde just then noticed a headpiece that Plasma Wisp was wearing on his head (?). He held the microphone up to where his mouth should be. "Lord Meta Knight, Verde is –"

The door suddenly burst open, and there was Meta Knight, a furious look in his eyes. "Awake!" he yelled.

Meta Knight ran up to Verde's bed, and shouted angrily, saying how he shouldn't have poured so much of his life force into that Sword Beam, how he was lucky to be alive, asking what was he thinking anyway? Verde could not understand why Meta Knight was shouting at him. Maybe Bugzzy was still alive, and he had failed to kill him somehow. As this thought struck him, he attempted to rise. As he did, a wild pain struck him, and he immediately lay back down.

Meta Knight realized how much pain Verde was in. He decided he should probably go easy on the boy. He did just help drive off a monster invasion after all, and all he had to show for it were a few scrapes and bruises. Or rather, Meta Knight thought as he saw the many bandages all over the little Star Warrior, _a lot_ of scrapes and bruises.

"It is alright, boy. The danger has passed. You have done well," he reassured Verde. "Dedede's army was able to drive them off. The Destroya battleship picked up the monsters that were not destroyed and flew off."

"So, does that mean Nightmare's army is gone for good?" Verde asked.

Meta Knight's eyes suddenly grew very serious "Ah, if only it were that easy. Unfortunately, no. If nothing else, Nightmare taught his army how to be stubborn. They will survive, but every time they challenge us, we shall defeat them. Our tenacity is how we will win."

"Well, I hope we don't have to win any time soon. I'm in neither the condition nor the mood to kick monster butt any time soon." Verde said.

"Don't worry, when you are recovered, you will be able to defeat any enemy you come across." Meta Knight said.

"Do you really think so?" Verde asked.

"I know so," Meta Knight replied. "As long as you refine your swordplay, you will become one of the greatest Star Warriors ever. Of this I am sure."

"You're laying it on a bit thick, aren't you?" Verde said, and they both laughed. Meta Knight's laugh sounded strange to Verde, as if Meta Knight himself didn't even recognize it. Perhaps it had been a long time since he had laughed.

Verde thought back to the battle with Bugzzy, and only now did he marvel at how the insect blew up when it died. Thinking at how powerful the sword beams were, Verde became worried about something.

"Meta Knight, I just thought of something," Verde said. "With all that power in the swords, I was wondering…is it safe for me to wield them?"

Meta Knight thought about this for a moment. "What exactly do you mean by safe?"

Verde shifted in his bed. "Well…it's just…I…" Verde sighed, and said, "What if Greenie the Terror decides to take the swords and go on a killing spree? Only with the kind of power in the swords, it's not just going to be a few murders, but a massacre. I…I just don't want anyone else to get hurt."

Meta Knight thought about this for a few moments. Then, he said, "You do not have to worry. We will get through this together. You are my apprentice. I am your mentor. I will help you control your alter ego."

Verde pondered this. He finally said, "Thanks, Meta Knight."

"That's _Lord_ Meta Knight to you, boy," Meta Knight said, and the two of them laughed again. _Damn it, what is happening to me?_ Meta Knight thought to himself. He was supposed to be the grim and taciturn knight who scared people out of their wits. But this boy was bringing out a side to him that hadn't seen the light of day in centuries. Perhaps these next few years training this boy would be more interesting than he had once perceived.

"You know, I just thought of something else," Verde said. "Your sword has a name. But what are my swords' names?"

"Well, Plasma Wisp?" Meta Knight asked, turning to his friend as he said this.

Plasma Wisp did not hear him. He was once again immersed in his machine part magazine.

"Plasma Wisp!" Meta Knight shouted.

Plasma Wisp looked up from his magazine and said calmly, "Yes, Lord Meta Knight?"

Meta Knight repeated Verde's question, resisting the urge to smack the green fireball.

"Well, to be honest, I hadn't really thought of a name yet," the mechanic said.

"I know! If it's a boy name him Alex, and if it's a girl, name her Alex!" Verde said.

Plasma Wisp looked at Verde with a look that said _Oh, really?_ "You know, I thought being sarcastic was my gig."

"Verde, they are your swords. How about you give them a name? I'm sure you'll come up with fine names," Meta Knight said.

Verde thought about this for a moment. "Sounds good to me." Verde looked at the ceiling as he thought. What's a good name for a sword? Maybe something mystical like Galaxia. Verde felt stumped for a long time. Then he had it.

"Let me see the swords," he requested. Meta Knight, not wanting to touch the swords, wheeled Verde around so that he was looking at them. Verde pointed to the one on the right, the one with the blue gemstone in it. "That one's Star Seeker." He pointed to the one on the left, the one with the yellow gemstone. "That one's Wishing Star."

Meta Knight's eyes curved in a smile. "Very fine names indeed."

Line Break

Days passed. As Verde's body was rebuilt, so was the castle. Soon, there was barely any evidence that a monster attack had even happened in Cappy Town.

Verde finally started his training with Meta Knight. As his skill with Star Seeker and Wishing Star grew, so did his other abilities. Meta Knight taught him how to be more aware of his surroundings, to use his sixth sense to detect oncoming attacks. Meta Knight helped Verde become stronger and faster than ever before. Within time, Verde was becoming one of the most skilled warriors in the realm

Yet Meta Knight told him that he still had a lot to learn.

Line Break

"What are we doing here?" Verde asked Meta Knight for probably the millionth time that day.

They were hiking up a mountain some length away from Cappy Town. They were near the top now. Far off in the distance, the two of them could see Castle Dedede and the surrounding town. It had been nearly a month since the pirate attack. All of the castle was rebuilt by now, all its towers fixed, and all the craters filled. The town was looking good too; all the buildings had been reconstructed and renovated. Verde couldn't help but think that the brand new, sparkling houses would probably make an even bigger target for Nightmare's army than it had before.

Rather than answer Verde with his usual "you'll see," Meta Knight instead said, "I am starting to get tired of your endless questions."

"I thought you said I ask all the right questions?" Verde asked before he could stop himself.

"That does not mean you can ask them all at once," Meta Knight said. "Anyway, we're here."

They were standing on a flat jut of rock, rather like a natural runway for airplanes. Beneath the "runway" was another larger flat bed of rock, more of a cliff really. Verde thought of what a shame it would be if he fell off that cliff.

"Now you can ask me what we're doing here," Meta Knight said.

"But it's no fun when you're expecting it," Verde complained.

Meta Knight merely sighed, and walked over to a rock. He rolled it away, and picked up a piece of green cloth that was lying underneath it. When he unfolded the piece of cloth, it was revealed to be a cape. A vague design of a bat could be seen on one side of the cape.

"We're here to teach you how to fly," Meta Knight said.

Verde paused for a moment. "How? In case you haven't noticed, we don't have any wings."

Although he was wearing a mask, Verde could tell that Meta Knight was smiling. "Yes, we do."

Verde was about to say something when Meta Knight turned around and ran off of the cliff.

Verde was mortified. He ran to the edge and looked at the flat bed of rock below. He then immediately jumped back as a dark blue figure flew up inches away from his face. Meta Knight landed right behind Verde, so he turned around.

Verde wasn't able to process what he was seeing. Meta Knight's cape was gone. In its place was a pair of leathery dark blue bat wings.

"Surprised?" Meta Knight asked.

For once, Verde was at a loss for words.

Meta Knight held out the green cape. "Put this on. Make sure the bat design is facing out."

Verde did as he asked. The cape felt strangely light and looked translucent, as if he could simply slide his hand through it if he wanted to.

"Now, then," Meta Knight said, "I want you to imagine a pair of wings on your back. Think of them as if they were always there. For the first time, it helps if you close your eyes."

Verde did just as he said. Closing his eyes, he thought of a pair of great bat wings appearing on his back, beating them on the air. He thought of his feet leaving the ground, the wind rushing past his face as he flew.

He felt an odd tingling sensation on his back. He opened his eyes and looked behind him. His cape was floating behind him, as if a heavy wind was blowing. Suddenly, the cape glowed with a white light. The tingling sensation intensified.

The white light faded and there, inexplicably, was a pair of green bat wings. He flapped his wings experimentally. They didn't feel any different from any other part on his body. They felt totally natural, as if he had had a pair of green bat wings all his life.

"How is this even possible?" Verde asked.

"That is a Dimensional Cape," Meta Knight explained. "It is made of a special material. It was enchanted at its creation. All of the Meta Knight clan use capes like these. Now, try flying just a little bit above the ground."

Verde flapped his wings intensively. He fluttered a few feet above the ground, then fell back down on his feet. His heart was racing. He had just flown. He had grown a pair of wings and he had flown.

"Oh, that was not flying," Meta Knight told Verde. He hadn't even realized that he had said that last thought out loud. "Try flying for real," Meta Knight instructed Verde.

Fly? For real? Sure, he had wings now, but what if it didn't work? What if he just fell right down the mountain and rolled into Cappy Town, a pile of cuts and bruises? Was Meta Knight playing a prank on him?

"It is all right. As long as you remember that you have wings, and that you can use them, you will be fine. It helps if you give it a running start for your first time," he assured Verde, indicating the runway of rock.

Verde decided to trust Meta Knight. Verde knew much about the dark blue figure that had become his mentor. He was too serious and grim for practical jokes, Verde decided.

Verde turned to the edge of the cliff. He took a step forward, then another. Suddenly he took off at full speed, flapping his wings as hard as he could. Verde fluttered a few feet above the ground, then a few more. Then he flew continuously above the ground, higher and higher. Finally, the cliffside disappeared and gave way to the flat bed of rock below, which also disappeared.

Verde was doing it. He was flying for real! The countryside flew by underneath him, so to speak. The sound of beating wings was music to his ears. He then heard another set of beating wings behind him. He looked behind him. Meta Knight was flying right behind him. He was smiling, a gesture Verde knew equated to Meta Knight laughing with delight. Verde looked ahead of them. He was surprised at how far they had come. Whereas before the buildings of Cappy Town were like little toys in the distance, now they were nearly halfway there, and getting there faster by the second.

He was flying fast, and he was flying free.

Line Break

From his vantage point on top of his store on the outskirts of Cappy Town, the small man watched the two distant figures flying ever closer to Castle Dedede with his bright yellow eyes. His blue hood made him appear to have ears popping out of the top of his head. A yellow zipper design surrounded the hole for his eyes. A white cape flowed behind him, and a white collar covered the rest of his face. Upon closer scrutiny, an observer would have noticed that the man had no legs, and that his hands weren't even attached to the rest of his body.

The man saw the two figures fly behind the walls of Castle Dedede. He watched the walls for a long time. Then, he descended the steps to his shop, closing the door behind him.

Various talismans and trinkets decorated the walls of his shop. Charms and the like were displayed on the shelves. A book of spells lay on a pedestal near the back of the shop. The man walked past all of these as he moved to the back of the shop. He tapped a certain spot on the wall in a particular pattern, and the wall vanished to reveal a secret room. The man entered this room.

The walls of this room were empty. The only thing in here was a pedestal, upon which was a crown. It seemed to glow gold in the dim light that filled the room from an unknown source. The crown had a big gem in the middle, though it did not seem to be valuable considering it was a deep grey with no sheen of any kind. The gold of the crown was dull as well.

The man looked at the crown with a hunger in his bright, yellow eyes. He waved his hand, and the crown's image seemed to waver, as if the reception was bad. The crown suddenly seemed to glow bright gold, as if it was brand new. The gem in the middle also turned a bright blue. The image wavered again, and the crown returned to its original dullness.

"Soon," said Magalor, self-crowned king of the multiverse.


End file.
